Detroit Catholic Central standout football player David Widzinski dies

By SCOTT M. BURNSTEIN and DAVE PHILLIPS

Tuesday, December 4, 2012

Novi Detroit Catholic Central's standout sophomore football player David Widzinski has died.

It is believed that Widzinski, a Northville resident who was a leader of a Catholic Central defense that helped lead the team into its second straight MHSAA Division 1 championship game late last month, passed away in his sleep.

The Wayne County Medical Examiner's Office has listed the cause of death as pending. Officials are awaiting results of toxicology tests.

The local Twitter sphere was ablaze with emotional tributes to Widzinski by the Catholic Central community on Monday night.

"The hole in the middle of our defense, that we will fill, the hole in the middle of our hearts will be there forever..Love you, David," Shamrocks assistant coach, Mike Mach, tweeted.

"I LOVE ALL OF YOU. WE WILL FIGHT AND HEAL TOGETHER. WE ARE A FAMILY AND WILL STAND TALL AS ONE FOR OUR BROTHER. #CCFAMILY, " tweeted Catholic Central athletic director Aaron Babicz.

"David I love you like a brother. I will remember you forever. Life is not fair," Widzinski's teammate and Shamrocks quarterback Garrett Moores, tweeted.

"It is with great sadness that the Catholic Central community mourns the loss of one of our brothers and Men of Catholic Central, sophomore David Widzinski, who passed away in his sleep sometime Sunday night or Monday morning," the letter reads.

"Our entire community stands with David's parents, Paul and Barbara, his sister Emily and his brother Stephen. Their pain is our pain; we are all one family."

Students, faculty and staff prayed a common rosary at 8 a.m. Tuesday, after which members of the football team met with Basilian Fathers and counselors, according to the letter.

Counselors and Basilian Fathers are available for all students, and teachers were "more pastoral than academic" with students on Tuesday, the letter stated.

"The hearts of our CC community have been tugged in several different and painful directions over this past year," the letter states. The school suffered tragedy in the spring, as then-junior Salvatore Cipriano was severely beaten in a baseball bat attack that left his father, Robert, dead.

Salvatore's brother, Tucker Cipriano, is charged with murder in the attacks that also injured their mother, Rose Cipriano.

"We are confident in the prayers, love and support of the greater community, as we have already experienced over this past year," Huber stated in the letter.

"We are grateful for the prayers and love of students and families from our fellow Catholic, public and private schools; you are good friends."

Funeral arrangements were pending as of 2 p.m. Tuesday and will be listed at catholiccentral.net "as soon as they are set," the letter states.

Widzinski's last time on the football field left a fitting legacy. The fearsome middle linebacker collected a game-high 15 tackles in the team's loss to Detroit Cass Tech in the state finals.